ISTANBUL (Medyascope) – The third hearing in a corruption trial targetting Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu took place on November 2 in Istanbul. The hearing included testimonies from witnesses and plaintiffs in the case.
By Leo Kendrick • Medyascope
Part of today’s hearing focused on a testimony from witness Aydın Şahin, who alleges he was instructed to withdraw and hand over two million Turkish Liras by Necati Özkan, a chief advisor to İmamoğlu who was also arrested in March 2025 alongside the mayor.
During today’s hearing another witness, Davut Akay, testified he did not know Istanbul Beylikdüzü district mayor Murat Çalık, an imprisoned ally of İmamoğlu who has been accused of bribery in the case.
The resumption of hearings in the Istanbul municipality case targeting İmamoğlu and his allies followed a two-week break, after the mayor’s defense ended October 17th.
During the conclusion of İmamoğlu’s four-day defense two weeks ago, the jailed mayor had rejected all allegations against him, describing them as politically motivated. İmamoğlu has been in pre-trial detention since March 2025.
Mayor’s defense followed closure of Turkey’s most-watched TV channel
Just hours before İmamoğlu’s highly-anticipated defense was due to begin in the early hours of October 14th, Turkish police raided the Istanbul headquarters of the country’s most-watched Halk TV news channel, pausing the broadcast and appointing a trustee to run the station.
Halk TV, known for its close affiliation with Turkey’s main-opposition Yeni Party, was the country’s most-watched news channel and one of the few that remained outside the control of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) affiliates. Halk TV owner Cafer Mahiroğlu currently lives in exile in London due to an outstanding warrant for his arrest in Turkey.
The raid was criticized by the Turkish opposition as an attack on press freedom and an attempt to prevent the airing of coverage of İmamoğlu’s four-day defense.
İmamoğlu condemned Halk TV closure in defense
During his defense shortly after the channel’s closure, İmamoğlu condemned the raid in harsh terms, saying:
“This attempt to destroy Turkey’s most-followed news channel is the result of a poisoned system. The whole world will read about this. Do you have no sense or reason at all? And you schedule this raid on the same day as my hearing. Now, even more people will be following.”
İmamoğlu also referenced Selahattin Demirtaş, a leading Kurdish politician and former presidential candidate imprisoned in Edirne since 2016, saying:
“Two presidential candidates are in prison, one in Edirne and the other in Silivri.”
On the second day of his defense, a new investigation was launched into İmamoğlu for words used during the hearing in which he described those attacking the rule of law in Turkey as “devoid of honor, integrity, and dignity.” The investigation accuses the mayor of “insulting civil servants on the basis of their duties.”
On the last day of his defense, İmamoğlu once again referenced Demirtaş, saying Erdoğan had lost his legitimacy by imprisoning the two opposition leaders:
“You cannot be legitimate while your opponents are imprisoned in Edirne and Silivri. You have lost your legitimacy. An election carried out under these conditions cannot be legitimate either.”
Corruption trial targeting imprisoned Istanbul Mayor resumes | Written&translated by Leo Kendrick | Edited by Medyascope English Newsroom
